Paper towel dispenser



y 1933- E. JACOBSEN 2,116,792

PAPER TOWEL DISPENSER Original Filed Dec. 28, 1936 INVENTUR Patented May 10, 1938 PATENT OFFICE PAPER TOWEL DISPENSER Edwin Jacobsen, Altadena, Calif. Original application December 28, 1936, Serial 117,830. Divided and this application March 17, 1937, Serial No. 131,442

. 2 Claims.

This application is a division of my original application Serial No.'117,830, filed Dec. 28, 1936.

While my invention relates in particular to a paper towel dispenser, it is equally useful and also adaptable to dispense tiolet paper and other sheets of flexible material that has need of being dispensed economically and Without undue waste.

The primary object of my invention is to dispense paper toweling and the like'without undue waste.

A further object of my invention is to provide dispenser so simple mechanically that it will be trouble free.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a dispenser that is cheap to manufacture.

With these and incidental objects in view, the

invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combination of parts, the essential elements of which are set forth in the appended claims, and a preferred form of embodiment of which is hereinafter shown with reference to the drawing which accompanies and forms a part of this specification.

In the drawing: Fig. 1 is a front elevation of my dispenser with a portion broken away to show the paper on the inside.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional View taken on line 2-2 Fig. 1 looking in the direction indicated.

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view taken on line 3-3 Fig. 1, looking in the direction indicated and showing the bottom of the stack of paper.

Fig. 4 is plan view of a stack of paper showing a rectangular sheet folded and ready to be placed in the dispenser.

Fig. 5 is one of the sheets of paper shown in Fig. 4 in an unfolded state, the dotted lines designating where the folds occur.

Fig. 61s a plan view of a stack of paper showing another type of fold.

Like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views.

The cabinet consists of a box like structure interposes the support bracket 9 and the hinge bracket H, which carries the hinge pin l2. The hinge bracket is also welded to the front piece The release lever [0 extends through the slots l3 in the front piece 4, exposing the operating tabs l4 and I5. The paper consists of a substantially square or rectangular sheet as shown in Fig. 5. The dotted lines I'Band [1 show where the sheet is to be folded and when the sheets are folded alternately and stacked they take the form shown in Fig. 4, which may be considered the bottom of the stack. "The dotted lines i6 and I! in Fig. 4 become the angular end l6 and the back edge I! in Fig; 4. The dotted line I6 in Fig. 4 designates the second sheet in the stack and is alternateor of the other hand in respect to the diagonal line [6 of the first sheet. Referring again to Fig. 5, it is not necessary to fold the sheet on the line l6 as the sheet may be cut to produce the desired angle. When a number of sheets are folded alternately and placed in a stack they will appear as shown in Fig. 3. The paper is not limited to a single fold as they may be folded several times so long as one free end presents an angular end.

To operate the dispenser it must first be loaded, which is accomplished by opening the door 6 which swings on the hinge IS. The stack of paper is placed in the cabinet with the diagonal edges on the lower side and toward the front. The stack rests on the step 1 and the support bracket 9, and the release lever I0, supporting the end of the paper having the angular end. The door 6 is now closed and held in position by the lock H]. To get a towel one of the tabs 14 or I 5 must be pressed. Referring for the moment to Fig. 3, let us say that the tab [4 is pressed. This will cause the lever in to swing on the pin l2, hence slide off of the angular end N5 of the sheet of paper 20. It is obvious that this portion of the sheet being unsupported will drop and rest on the bottom 5. The front piece 4, the bottom 5, and the sides 2 being cut away allows the paper 20 to appear as shown in Fig. 1. The towel 20 may now be pulled off of the step I and the bracket 9 through the opening 2|. If however. the towel is not pulled out it is not possible to release another sheet of paper as the supporting bracket 9 and the step I hold the straight edge of the paper 22 and the back edge ll, thus preventing the diagonal edge of the next towel from falling to the bottom 5. From this it may be seen that when a towel appears in the openings 24, it must be pulled out before another towel can be dropped or made to appear. It is true that should a tab be pressed a towel appears as shown at 20, Fig. 1. Should a tab be pressed again before the first towel is removed nothing will seem to have happened. If, however, the

towel is now removed another will appear without further action on the release lever. Should the tab be pressed twice after a towel has appeared then the second towel will not appear after the towel in View has been removed. In other words no matter how many times the tabs have been pressed no more than two sheets can be obtained. They must be removed from the dispenser one at a time and this will obviate undue waste.

The support bracket 9, is not essential except when extreme loads are to be carried. Ordinarily the paper may rest directly on the release lever I0, thus obviating the bracket 9. While I show the door hinged at the bottom it may be hinged from the side.

In Fig. 6 is shown a stack of paper folded so as to drop a sheet each time the tabs of the control lever is operated. This type of fold may be desirable where the element of waste is held in check by other means.

While the form of mechanism herein shown and described is admirably adapted to fulfill the objects primarily stated, it is to be understood that it is not in ended to confine the invention to the one form of embodiment herein shown and described, as it is susceptible of embodiment in various forms all coming within the scope of the claims which follow.

What I claim is:

1. A paper dispensing cabinet, adapted to dispense a stack of paper sheets having alternately arranged angular front edges, having back, side and top elements formed into a boxlike structure, a step extending inwardly from the back of the cabinet for supporting the back edges of the paper, said step having a free end inclined downwardly and forwardly, a triangular bracket extending inwardly from the front of the cabinet for supporting the front edge of the paper, a releasing lever presenting a substantially straight inner edge hinged to said bracket for horizontal movement for alternately releasing the angular ends of paper that rest thereon, a front piece secured to the side elements adjacent their lower forward edges and extending toward the free end of the step to form a restricted opening for the paper to be drawn through.

2. A paper dispensing cabinet, adapted to dispense a stack of paper sheets having alternately arranged angular front edges, having back, side and top elements formed into a boxlike structure, a step extending inwardly from the back of the cabinet for supporting the back edges of the paper, said step having a free end inclined downwardly and forwardly, a triangular bracket extending inwardly from the front of the cabinet for supporting the front edge of the paper, a releasing lever presenting a substantially straight inner edge hinged to said bracket for horizontal movement for alternately releasing the angular ends of paper that rest thereon.

EDWIN J ACOZBSEN. 

